


Being Sisters Means You Always Have Back-Up

by Colagirlsc



Category: Brooklyn Nine-Nine (TV)
Genre: Amy/Rosa/Jake friendship, Implied/Referenced Sexual Assault, Rosa has emotions
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-05
Updated: 2019-07-09
Packaged: 2019-11-12 13:02:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 5
Words: 4,420
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18011396
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Colagirlsc/pseuds/Colagirlsc
Summary: Rosa's youngest sister moves to Brooklyn, and Rosa is oddly unhappy about the move. But when they are faced with the unthinkable, will Jake and Amy be able to figure out what's going on in Rosa's head? And will her sister be okay?Set in season 6. The first chapter briefly mentions events of "He Said, She Said" although it ends differently.





	1. Chapter 1

“Good morning, Rosa,” Amy said as she entered the bullpen. She was greeted with a grunt from Rosa. Regular morning then, Amy thought.  
“She’s in a mood today,” Jake said as Amy sat down across from him. Amy sighed. Rosa had been grumpy all week. Not that she was naturally cheerful, but she had seemed different than usual. Almost nervous, Amy thought, although about what she didn’t know.  
Holt stepped out of his office. “Santiago. Diaz. I need to speak to you please.”  
“Oooo someone’s in trouble,” Jake called as Amy quickly go up. Rosa just rolled her eyes as she got out of her chair.  
Once they were both in the office, Holt closed the door behind him. “Have a seat detectives,” he said, as he moved to sit behind his desk. “I have a case for you, but it requires some...discretion.”   
“What for?” Rosa asked in a clipped but interested tone.  
“A man is filing assault charges after his employee hit him and...well...injured his...um...his genitalia.” Amy cringed. Rosa snorted in an attempt to hold back a laugh.  
“The woman is claiming that her boss was sexually assaulting her, which is why I would like you both to go take her statement,” Holt finished, looking between the two women.   
“Understood, sir,” Amy said, standing up. Rosa nodded and followed Amy out of the office.  
They drove together to meet the woman in her home, hoping to make her more comfortable by speaking with her there. After they finished taking her statement, Amy and Rosa walked outside and stood outside of their car.   
“So what’s your opinion?” Amy asked Rosa. Rosa just glanced down at her watch and cleared her throat.   
“I have to pick somebody up at the airport. Holt knows,” Rosa said, not making eye contact. Amy was interested but knew better than to ask any prying questions.  
“I’ve got this,” Amy said. “Join us at Shaw’s tonight if you get time, okay?” Rosa nodded, got in her squad car, and drove away.  
“I will never understand her,” Amy muttered to herself as she turned toward the subway.  
***  
Amy was two drinks in and getting louder by the second. When Rosa walked in, Amy ran over and hugged her. It wasn’t until Rosa wriggled out of her grasp that Amy noticed the young woman standing behind Rosa.  
The girl had the same curly dark hair and piercing eyes as Rosa, and Amy immediately inferred that this was one of Rosa’s sisters. However, this girl looked very nervous and unsure of herself.  
Rosa cleared her throat. “Everybody,” she said. “This is my younger sister Stephanie. She’s moving to Brooklyn.”  
Gina looked intrigued, Terry looked excited, and Charles let out a squeal and ran to hug Stephanie, who looked very uncomfortable. Rosa flung him off as he began pestering Stephanie with questions.  
“Where are you moving from? How old are you? What’s Rosa like with you?”  
“Come on, Steph,” Rosa mumbled under her breath, dragging her stunned sister behind her to the bar.   
Jake sidled up next to Amy. “Didn’t even know she had a younger sister,” he laughed.   
“That must be who she was picking up at the airport earlier,” Amy said.  
“Interesting,” Jake said handing Amy another drink. “Wanna dance?”  
***  
The night went on with the squad enjoying their time at the bar. Amy stopped drinking since she knew that she was going to drive, and as she sobered up, she realized that Rosa’s sister was sitting off at a booth by herself. Amy looked around the bar and found Rosa, who was in the middle of an arm wrestling competition with Terry and was doing surprisingly well.   
Amy felt bad for the girl who obviously didn’t know anybody so she went over and sat across from her.  
“Hey,” Amy said, sticking out her hand. “I’m Amy Santiago. I work with Rosa.”  
Stephanie timidly shook Amy’s hand. “Rosa has told me a lot about you. She says you’re one of her best friends at the station.”  
Amy tried to hide her surprise and amusement. She knew that Rosa had a lot of feelings that she didn’t share with her coworkers, but it was interesting to hear that she did share them with her family. Or at least her baby sister.  
“Well I know you’re Rosa’s sister,” Amy said, “so you don’t have to answer this if you don’t want to, but what brings you to Brooklyn?” Stephanie chuckled quietly.  
“Yeah Rosa doesn’t usually answer personal questions, even from me,” she laughed. “But I don’t mind. I just finished college in Virginia and wanted to move back closer to home but didn’t really want to move back in with my parents so I figured it would be fun to move here. I wouldn’t be too far away from my parents and I would have Rosa nearby, although….” Stephanie’s sentence trailed off and she looked down at her drink. Amy could tell that she wanted to say more but wasn’t sure if she should, so Amy probed a little further.  
“Is something the matter?”   
“Has Rosa seemed weird to you lately?” Stephanie asked.  
“Not really,” Amy said.   
“Hmm,” Stephanie muttered. “Cause normally she’s really excited to see me and gives me a huge hug and asks me tons of questions about how I’m doing but today she seemed to shy away when I went to hug her and she’s been really quiet.”  
Amy was still processing the part about Rosa being a hugger and showing outward excitement and Stephanie picked up on Amy’s shock.  
“I know Rosa isn’t affectionate around most people,” Stephanie said, “but with me it’s different. She has always protected me and favored me to the point that it’s a joke in our family. That’s why it’s so odd. She’s not acting like the Rosie I know and love.”  
Again Amy choked at hearing Rosa called “Rosie” but quickly nodded her understanding. “I bet she’s just adjusting to the idea of having you here. Plus we’re working on a sensitive case right now that she’s really focused on so that’s probably distracting her.” Stephanie nodded. “Don’t worry, I’m sure she’ll be back to normal Rosie in no time.”  
Stephanie laughed. “You better not let her hear you call her that. You might lose a limb.”  
“Good call,” Amy said. “I’ll forget you ever told me that. And if you ever need anything, feel free to call or text me.” She wrote her name and phone number down on a napkin on the table. “Any sister of Rosa is a friend of mine.”  
“Thanks,” Stephanie said, smiling at Amy. Amy smiled back.   
***   
Amy and Rosa’s case resolved itself much easier than they thought it would. After a little bit of pushing from Captain Holt and a few minutes left alone in the interrogation room with Rosa (Rosa was the master of taking things just to the point of legality), the man confessed that he had been trying to get his secretary to sleep with him when she hit him. Amy was glad for it to be over in just a few days.  
About a week after they closed the case, Amy jolted awake at the sound of her phone ringing at 2 am. She ignored Jake’s groans and answered.  
“Santiago.”  
She heard labored breathing on the other end, then a quiet voice spoke.   
“Is this Amy?”  
“Yes,” Amy replied, confused.  
“It’s Stephanie...Stephanie Diaz...Rosa’s sister.”  
Amy sat up. Stephanie sounded out of breath and like she was having to work to speak.  
“Yeah Stephanie. Hey. What’s going on?” Amy tried to keep her voice steady, but she had a gut feeling that something wasn’t right.   
Amy heard a pained cough and a gasp. She sat up straighter. “Stephanie?”  
“Can you...can you come help me? I need...I need help.” Amy jolted out of bed.  
“Where are you?”  
“My apartment. The building a block down from that bar we were at.”  
“I’m on my way and I’ll call Rosa to meet us.”  
“NO!” Amy froze, and she heard more coughing over the phone. “Please. Promise me. No Rosa.”  
Amy was confused, but her concern for the girl won out and she quickly promised. She would call Rosa once she knew what was going on.   
“Okay, I’m on my way. Do you want me to stay on the phone with you?” There was no response on the other end and Amy started to panic. “Stephanie? Stephanie?! Shit.”  
Amy frantically shook Jake awake.  
“What’s going on?” he muttered, still half asleep.  
“We have to go,” Amy said. “Now.”


	2. Chapter 2

“Stephanie!” Jake yelled as he banged on the door for the third time. He and Amy had quickly found her apartment and knocked quietly at first, but after receiving no answer even after knocking and speaking louder, they were getting frantic.  
“Jake, something’s wrong,” Amy said, her face filled with panic. Jake nodded.  
“Stand back,” he said, and quickly slammed his shoulder into the door, easily knocking it off of its hinges.   
Amy rushed in ahead of Jake, scanning the small living room for any sign of Stephanie. Finding none, she moved to the bedroom and froze when she caught sight of her. The girl was lying unconscious on the ground, partially dressed. Amy could see bruises forming on her thighs and wrists, but the most apparent were those forming handprints around her neck.   
“Holy shit,” Jake said as he caught up with Amy. His words broke Amy from her trance and she jumped into action.  
“Call 911,” she said as she pulled the blanket off the bed and knelt next to Stephanie. After draping the blanket over the girl she shook her gently, trying to wake her.  
“Stephanie,” Amy said firmly. “Come on, Stephanie, wake up for me.” She could hear Jake on the phone with dispatch in the background. Stephanie stirred and began blinking slowly, obviously trying to open her eyes.   
“There we go. I’ve got you. You’re going to be ok.” Stephanie looked around, confused, audibly struggling to breath. Amy tried to keep her from panicking.   
“An ambulance is on its way,” Amy said, brushing the girl’s hair out of her eyes. Stephanie just nodded and started to close her eyes again. “No, no, you’ve got to stay awake for me,” Amy said, but Stephanie had lost consciousness again. They could hear the sirens outside signaling that the ambulance had arrived.  
Jake went to meet them at the door, but Amy stopped him.  
“Jake, I’m going to go with her to the hospital,” she said. “I need you to go get Rosa.”  
“But I thought she said…”  
“I don’t care what she said,” Amy cut in. “Rosa needs to know.” Jake nodded his understanding as the paramedics rushed in and soon Amy was rushing out next to Stephanie and Jake was left standing alone.  
***  
Jake stood in Stephanie’s bedroom, still trying to take in everything that had just happened. After a few minutes the shock wore off, and he started looking around the room with the mindset of a cop.   
He had obviously noticed Stephanie’s physical state when he entered the room, but he now observed the broken lamp next to the bed and how the sheets were twisted around. He also cringed as he noticed a patch of blood in the middle of the bed that had originally been hidden by the quilt Amy grabbed. He found the quilt still on the floor where the paramedics had left it.  
As he left the apartment he tried to touch as little as possible, aware that this was most likely going to become a crime scene. Then he turned his attention to his next task: informing Rosa.  
On the drive to Rosa’s apartment, Jake tried to determine the best course of action. He wasn’t a fan of approaching Rosa with bad news on a regular day, let alone in the middle of the night. She was not going to take this well.  
When he reached Rosa’s place he knocked three times on the door.  
“Rosa, it’s Jake open up.” After no response he knocked louder. “Rosa, come on. Open up. It’s important.”   
Suddenly the door swung open and Jake came face to face with the barrel of Rosa’s gun.  
“What the fuck, Peralta? It’s three in the morning.” Yep. That’s about the response Jake was expecting. Jake cleared his throat and looked past the gun to Rosa’s face.  
“Rosa, get dressed. I need you to come with me to the hospital.”   
Jake caught the flicker of emotion pass over Rosa’s face before she lowered the gun. “Give me a minute,” she said, walking back into her apartment. She slowly walked over and started the coffee pot.  
“No, Rosa, I don’t think you understand,” Jake said. “We need to go now.” Rosa turned to face Jake.  
“Tell me what’s going on, Peralta.”  
Jake took a deep breath.  
“Your sister was assaulted.”  
Rosa froze, with a look on her face that Jake had never seen before and one that he hoped to never see again.   
“Take me to her,” she said and grabbed her jacket and shoes as she walked out of the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a shorter chapter because I'm working on the chapter in the hospital and I want to make sure I do it justice. Let me know what you think!


	3. Chapter 3

When Jake and Rosa arrived at the hospital, they found Amy sitting in a waiting room, nervously wringing her hands. Amy stood up when they entered the room and looked at Rosa, who looked ready to punch somebody.

“Where is she?” Rosa demanded. “What’s going on?”

“The doctors took her back,” Amy said. “They haven’t come to give any updates yet.” Rosa grunted and kicked a plastic chair over. 

“Tell me what happened.”

“We don’t really know,” Jake said. “She called Amy asking for help and when we got to her apartment she was unconscious on the floor.” Rosa’s face showed a mixture of fear, anger, and confusion. Jake had never seen Rosa express this much emotion before, but he could tell that she was close to shutting down.

“She called you,” Rosa said, more a statement than a question. Amy nodded. She wasn’t sure, but she thought she saw a glimmer of disappointment pass over Rosa’s face. But soon it was back to pure anger.

Rosa began pacing back and forth across the room. “How long have you been here?”

“About thirty minutes,” Amy said. “But they should be here with an update soon.” Rosa didn’t reply, just continued pacing. Jake glanced at Amy, silently asking if they should tell her more, but decided to let the doctors explain everything. 

After what seemed like ages of waiting and watching Rosa walk back and forth, a doctor entered the room. 

“Family of Stephanie Diaz?” 

Rosa stopped pacing and Amy and Jake stood up.

“Good morning,” he said. “I’m Dr. Corley. How are you related to Ms. Diaz?”

“I’m her sister,” Rosa said.

“We’re her friends and the ones who found her,” Amy added. “Plus all three of us are detectives.”

“I see,” Dr. Corley said. “Well why don’t we sit down?”

“Let’s not,” Rosa replied curtly. The doctor’s eyes widened and Amy just shook her head, sitting back down behind Rosa. Jake continued standing as well.

“Well then. Ms. Diaz was unconscious upon arrival displaying signs of blunt force trauma to several areas of her body. We were quickly able to determine that she was suffering from pulmonary edema caused by strangulation.” Rosa went pale, but Amy was confused.

“What does that mean?” The doctor looked at her.

“Bruising showed that she had been strangled, and the strangulation caused fluid build-up in the lungs which was making it difficult for her to breathe. We have her hooked up to a breathing tube right now to allow her lungs to heal more quickly.” Rosa nodded, still a sickly shade of white. 

The doctor glanced at his notes before clearing his throat and continuing.

“Upon examination Ms. Diaz also showed signs of sexual assault.” Amy’s eyes filled with tears but Jake was not surprised based on what he saw in Stephanie’s apartment. Rosa, however, looked like she was going to pass out. She quickly sat down in a chair and put her head in her hands. “A rape kit confirmed our suspicions. Other than that she needed a few stitches for a cut on her face but our bigger concern right now is getting her lungs back to normal.”

Amy nodded and looked at Rosa. Rosa wasn’t moving, still holding her head in her hands, so Amy addressed the doctor for her. 

“May we see her?”

“Yes you may, but be aware that we are keeping her unconscious until we feel she is well enough to have the breathing tube removed.”

“And how long will that be?” Jake asked, glancing at Rosa, who was still frozen.

“Hopefully no more than a day,” the doctor said. “If you would like to follow me, I’ll take you to her room.”

The three detectives followed the doctor to the small hospital room. Jake paused when the reached the door, grabbing Amy by the arm.

“Rosa,” he said. “Why don’t you go in first? We’ll come in when you’re ready.” Rosa just nodded and slowly opened the door.

***

Rosa had been trying to prepare herself for what was coming the entire walk up to the room. She knew what a pulmonary edema was from her few years in medical school and so she knew what to expect from a medical standpoint, but nothing could prepare her for what met her eyes when she walked in. 

Stephanie lay still in bed, with the only sound in the room being the beep of the machines. Her normally tan face was as pale as the sheets except for the bruises and stitches on her face. Tears came to Rosa’s eyes when she saw the bright purple bruises in the shape of handprints that wrapped around Stephanie’s throat.

“Oh Steph,” Rosa groaned as she sat down next to the bed. She reached for her sister’s hand and was surprised by how cold it was. 

“Lo siento pequena (I’m sorry little one),” Rosa said as she felt a few tears drop. This was all her fault. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took so long. Working on the next chapter now and should hopefully have it up soon!


	4. Chapter 4

Amy and Jake stood outside the room, letting Rosa have some time alone with her sister.

“I can’t believe this happened,” Amy sighed, rubbing her eyes.

“I know,” Jake nodded, putting his arm around his wife’s shoulders. She leaned into him as he guided her to some chairs in the hallway.

“I’m worried about Rosa,” Amy said.

“I know,” Jake replied. Amy looked up at him. 

“Don’t you have anything else to say?” Jake laughed under his breath.

“I’m not sure there is much else to say. I know that this kind of thing happens all the time; I just never thought it would happen to somebody we know. And knowing Rosa, she’s going to bottle all of her feelings up and not talk to anybody about it.” Jake paused, leaving them in silence for a moment. “Why do you think Stephanie didn’t want us to call Rosa? For that matter, why didn’t she call Rosa in the first place?”

“That first night we met her, at the bar, Stephanie told me that she and Rosa used to be really close but that Rosa had been distant ever since Stephanie had decided to move to Brooklyn.”

“Interesting,” Jake muttered. He had known Rosa since the academy, and while she had never been open about her family, she didn’t seem like the type to shun a family member who obviously looked up to her. 

The pair sat in silence for about five minutes, then Rosa emerged from the room. She kept her eyes to the floor and Amy could tell that her cheeks were red from crying.

“I have to call my parents,” she said, still staring at the floor. “Would one of you mind staying with Steph? I mean I know she’s not awake and all but…” Rosa started to stammer a little.

“Of course!” Amy said, jumping up. “It’s not a problem at all. I completely understand.”

“Thanks, Amy,” Rosa said, looking up quickly and giving Amy a small smile. 

“I’ll go get us all some coffee,” Jake said. “And I’ll call Holt and let him know what’s going on.”

“Thanks, Peralta,” Rosa said, and headed down the hallway to call her parents.

***

The next few hours were spent taking turns sitting with Stephanie. Rosa was all over the place. Her parents were in California visiting family and she had somehow managed to convince them that they did not need to end their trip early. She scared every doctor that came in, to the point that Amy needed to remind her that the doctors were only there to help her sister.

Around mid-afternoon the next day, Captain Holt came by to bring news about the case, which was being handled by a neighboring precinct. Rosa was initially furious over not being allowed to work the case, but Jake was able to make her see that she was way too close to it to think calmly or rationally. Rosa responded by throwing her phone against the wall, which proved Jake’s point.

Rosa was sitting quietly by the bed when the captain walked in.

“The 9-2 has done as much as they can until they can get a statement from Ms. Diaz,” Holt said. “They have gone through the room and found fingerprints, but unfortunately there were no matches in the system. The same is true for DNA found at the scene and from the swabs.”

Rosa took several deep breaths, trying to calm herself.

“So they have nothing?” Holt shook his head.

“Unfortunately no. We need a statement first.”

Rosa looked over at her sister, who still lay motionless, the only movement the slight rise and fall of her chest caused by the breathing tube. Holt looked at Stephanie as well, and put his hand on Rosa’s back. Oddly, she did not immediately move to brush it off.

“I spoke to the doctors,” Holt said in a reassuring tone. “They think they’ll be able to remove the ventilator tomorrow. That means she’ll wake up. And she’ll be able to tell us what happened. We will figure this out.”

Rosa nodded but did not look back at Holt, who got the hint that she wanted to be left alone and quietly left the room.

Rosa stared at Stephanie’s hand. As happy as she was that her sister was going to wake up, she was also terrified of what that would mean. At least unconscious she didn’t have to deal with the emotional and physical pain. She was oblivious. When she woke up she would be forced to relive the entire thing. And Rosa wasn’t sure that she ever wanted to hear any details. Ever.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not super happy with the ending but it needed to end so we can move on. Stephanie will wake up in the next chapter and we'll see how Rosa handles the ordeal.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the super long hiatus there. Life got crazy and I had some MAJOR writer's block. But I'm back now and should have another chapter ready to go in the next day or two!

Stephanie felt like she was underwater. She could hear muffled sounds and a beeping that seemed like it was miles away. Her eyelids felt heavy and she tried desperately to force them open. In the brief seconds she was able to open them, she saw Rosa sitting next to her, holding her hand. As her eyes blinked shut once more, she thought she saw Rosa smile and heard the soft words, “Ve a dormir. Todo esta bien. (Go to sleep. Everything is okay.)” She let herself sink back into darkness.

***

The next time Stephanie awoke, Rosa and Amy were both at her bedside. Stephanie started breathing heavily, her eyes darting around the room. Amy could see that she was getting worked up, so she quickly grabbed Stephanie’s hand.

“Hey. Hey. Hey. You’re okay. Just relax.” Stephanie nodded and took a deep breath. Rosa jumped out of her chair.

“I’m going to get the doctor,” she said, and practically ran from the room. Amy and Stephanie made eye contact with each other. Stephanie looked concerned, but Amy just smiled at her. 

Rosa quickly returned with a doctor. Amy stepped back from the bed to let the doctor approach and went and stood next to Rosa while the doctor checked on Stephanie and asked her a few questions. Stephanie just nodded or shook her head. She was obviously tired and small movements would cause her to wince in pain. 

After a minute or so, the doctor turned to face Rosa. 

“Things are looking good,” he said, and turned back to Stephanie. “We’ll get you something a little stronger for the pain.” Stephanie nodded, a grimace going across her face. 

The doctor motioned for Rosa to join him outside, so Rosa followed him. Amy returned to her seat next to the bed. 

Once they were outside, the doctor spoke. “Physically she seems to be doing well. Her lungs sound good and her oxygen levels are stable. I know that the bruising around her throat looks bad but it is healing nicely.” Rosa sighed in relief.

“We will need to keep her for a few more days, however,” he continued. “Partially because we can monitor her reactions to pain medication better, but also so we can keep an eye on her mental state. People who experience this type of trauma…” Rosa interrupted him.

“I’m a cop,” she said pointedly. “I know all about this. I can handle it.”

“I know that you have seen this before at work,” the doctor said softly. “But it is different when it happens to somebody you know and love. You need to prepare yourself for this. It’s not going to be an easy recovery.”

“Like I said,” Rosa said. “I can handle it.” She pushed past the doctor and went back into the room, where she found Stephanie sleeping again. Amy looked up at her.

“So what did the doctor say?”

“She has to stay for a few more days to make sure that nothing changes but things look good,” Rosa said. Amy’s face lit up.

“That’s great!” Amy said. Rosa sighed and plopped into the seat next to Amy. “That is great, right?” Amy said, confused about Rosa’s reaction.

“That asshole doctor seems to think that I can’t take care of my own sister,” Rosa huffed. “They want to keep her here so that they can make sure she is emotionally okay. Like I don’t know how to monitor that myself. I know how people react to trauma. I’m a cop. I see it all the time.”

“They’re just being careful,” Amy said. “She was in a coma for two days. It’s better to be safe than sorry.” 

Rosa just grunted at her. Amy took that as her cue to leave.  

 


End file.
